I did it! I have been promising myself for a few winters now that I would get out and sample the delights of snowshoeing and finally, this Monday, I got out there and did it. And reader, I loved it! What’s not to love? Clear blue skies and sunshine; spectacular views from the top of […]

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So after Sunday in the snow, the week was positively spring-like and had me all fired up to get working in the garden. Digging and barrowing in short-sleeves and suncream in February and with views like these as my backdrop certainly doesn’t feel like work. More like balm for the body, mind and soul. And that is […]

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The 9 year-old was, in his own words, ‘outraged’ at the scant covering of snow here at home last weekend. While friends in England were ‘enjoying’ blizzards we barely had a dusting, despite living at nearly 700 metres above sea level. No chance of a snow day from school on the horizon and simply not […]

Storm Hugo is currently battering most of Spain, Asturias included. Up high (above 800m) the precipitation is depositing as heavy snow and drifts. Below this height the rain-laden sky blocks out the views of the snowy peaks and muffles the usually vibrant landscape to a dull and lifeless grey. It’s good weather for curling […]

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Having exhausted the delights of ‘I spy’ and ‘I went to market’, we were passing the time on a long car journey with some ‘trabalenguas'; Spanish tongue twisters. A game certain to challenge and amuse in equal proportions in a car carrying one native speaker (our seven year old son) and two adult learners of […]

‘Vida normal’. ‘Normal life’ might not sound that exciting but after two months of enforced sitting around, the consultant’s words were music to my ears. That was on Tuesday. By the weekend I was walking down a scree slope with the aid of two walking poles. Normal life means different things to different people. Two […]

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I type this from my bed, right foot raised on several pillows. A moment’s inattention on unaccustomed high heels and uneven cobblestones turned my foot to the side and left me with a fracture at the base of my 5th metatarsal. Ouch. And arse. Not the start to the new year that I had been […]

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As seems to be the way, autumn has been glorious here in Asturias and the good weather has persisted right into January. Last Sunday 8th January I made the most of the infinitely clear skies and sunshine and got out with friends for a big hike in the mountains. With 800 metres of ascent and […]

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One of the many things I love about Asturias is that vast swathes of deciduous woodland adorn so much of it. Beautiful to look at, especially in autumn when they put on an extended fiery show, they also provide wondrous places for hiking and great opportunities for foraging. And if you happen to be a […]

When you live in paradise the temptation can be to stay put but every now and then the urge to stray a little further afield still sneaks up on us. It doesn’t have to be very far, there are plenty of spectacular places to visit within just a couple of hours drive and, let’s face […]